Battle Ball
by Sovereign and Unbroken
Summary: In the near-future of Equestria, the rise of technology and the decline of war has led to the birth of a new sport; Battle Ball, a violent, full-contact sport made to satiate the public's hunger for violence without war. A new team composed of rookie players rises up to face the professionals. **No longer accepting OC's - the team roster is full!**
1. Chapter 1

"I'm so bored…" Ruby groaned. The small, crimson-scaled dragon sat atop a luggage bag, across the aisle from Saphira. Purple spikes ran up and down her head, spine, and tail. "I never thought trains were so boring…"

"Oh, come on." Saphira replied. The pegasus mare had a sapphire blue coat, and a long, silvery mane that drooped down and covered the right half of her face. Her eyes were a dull gray-blue. Saphira dressed herself in pristine white robes. Under her robe, a set of three claw-marks sat upon her flank. Her armor-bag sat beside her. "It's not bad at all. We took the train to relax, remember?"

Ruby shook her head. "I still don't even understand why we're moving to Canterlot…"

"I told you already," Saphira said, rolling her eyes, "I got an offer to join a new Battle Ball team. At a professional level, too."

Ruby shook her head again and looked back out the window. "I just wanna go home…"

Saphira sighed. "I know… But, think of it like an adventure! We're going to meet new ponies, make new friends. It'll be fun!"

* * *

The train slowed to a halt, eventually jarring to a complete stop at the Canterlot train-station. Saphira and Ruby were already waiting by the door when it opened. Ruby sat on Saphira's back, carrying a bag of luggage, whilst Saphira lugged her armor-bag alongside her. A few other ponies, the more impatient or hurried ones, side-stepped and went around the duo without so much as a passing glance, despite Ruby being a baby dragon. Having odd pets was a usual things nowadays.

Saphira noticed an armor-clad stallion standing in a crowd. His armor made him stick out like a sore hoof. He seemed to only be wearing the vest, not the rest of the armor. His helmet dangled from a strap around his chest. The stallion's coat was a dull gray, and he wore a black do-rag. His cutie mark was three horseshoes, overlapping. He eyed Saphira and Ruby for a moment, before trotting up to them.

"Hey, you must be Saphira and Ruby, right?" the stallion asked. "Name's Blank Blitz. Coach said you'd be coming. Sent me to bring you to the little training-stadium we've got."

"Yes. It's nice to meet you Blank Blitz." Saphira began.

Blank Blitz raised a hoof and cut her off. "Please, just call me Blitz." He said, setting his helmet on his head. With a hiss, rubber seals folded out from beneath the helmet, and latched onto the collar of his vest. Beneath the dark-blue visor of the helmet, Saphira couldn't make out any facial details.

Saphira recognized the helmet. It was an older breather-style helmet, designed for severe weather use. "Well, if you'd lead the way, we'd be happy to go."

Blank Blitz gave a nod, and waved a hoof. "I know I look like an ass, wearin' my armor around like this, but it's comfortable, and it's kinda like a badge of honor." He said, his voice slightly altered by the microphones in his helmet.

Saphira just nodded, and followed him. "So, I haven't been in Canterlot for quite some time… Everything is so different."

Blank Blitz nodded. "Yeah. Things change here real quick. Buildings get put up or tore down, that kinda stuff. Our stadium isn't too far from here, actually. It's a real small place compared to the big-shots' stadiums, but it's big enough for us to practice in."

Ruby groaned as her stomach growled. "Say, is there anywhere to eat around here?"

"Tons of places. But you gotta meet the rest of the team before you can do anything else." Blitz replied. "I'm sure somepony there will be willing to buy a mare and her… Uh, _companion_, some lunch."

The trio walked in silence for a few minutes, save for the clatter of the street. Ruby let out a frustrated groan as they passed a bakery and a pizzeria. At that point, even Saphira felt her stomach rumble a bit. '_I hope we hurry this up, I'm kinda hungry too…'_ They walked on for just another minute, before they found themselves in the middle of the industrial district, staring at a building that seemed to look just like a factory on the outside. Blitz began trotting in.

"You coming?" He asked, glancing back at her for a moment.

Saphira paused, and followed him inside. She was shocked when she set hoof inside. The outer walls blended in with the rest of the industrial district, but the inside matched any other stadium she had seen before. Except a little bit smaller. There was no roof. Around the rim of the wall, Saphira could make out a few doorways, undoubtedly leading to different portions of the stadium. She could see a few benches up and down the field. And the turf looked like it had been well-cared for.

On the turf, three ponies were tossing a ball back and forth. All of the figures seemed to be wearing their vests, but not the rest of their armor. Blank Blitz whistled, and the three figures dropped the ball and rushed to meet the trio.

The first to make it to the group was a navy blue pegasus mare with a medium-length grey mane and rose eyes. She carried a brain-bucket helmet under her foreleg as she flew. Her chest-piece was light and tight-fitting, being white with two gold stripes running down her back. Her cutie mark was a cloud pouring rain. She landed beside the group.

Next was another pegasus mare, this one choosing to gallop forward instead of fly. She was a tall, thin figure with a gray coat and black mane, kept in two ponytails. She wore a purple chest-piece, with a few spikes on the back, and even more on the rear set of boots. Her cutie mark was a road-runner. A brain-bucket helmet was dangling from her armor, with a pair of goggles on her neck.

The last pony was a tall, wiry pegasus with an athletic build. He had a gray coat and a short-cut black mane. He wore a heavy chest-piece, which was black with green stripes. A full-head helmet dangled from his chest-piece, with what seemed to be a large tooth sitting atop it. His cutie mark was a turtle.

Blank Blitz nodded. "This is Rain Roller," Blitz motioned to the blue pegasus, "She plays center with me. Filly's faster than you can tell."

Rain Roller gave Saphira a small nod. "So, you're the new filly, eh? Welcome to the team."

"And these two are the Deep twins, Odi and Rabby. Odi plays defense, Rabby plays forward rush." Blitz said, waving to the remaining pegasai.

"Nice to meet you!" The twins said, perfectly in sync. "Glad to have another member on the team."

Blitz chuckled. "They do that a lot."

**Alright. Here's my newest project. At the moment, I'm still in need of characters. So, PM me and I'll send you details, if you're interested. Check my profile to see the team's roster, and see what positions need filling. Saphira and Ruby belong to Allenfairytale. Odi and Rabby Deep belong to Noxfero. Rain Roller belongs to S. Dloyner. Blank Blitz belongs to me. Chapters will get longer once we've got a full team!**


	2. Welcome to the Stadium

Three more figures emerged from a door on the far left of the stadium. One figure was that of a massive earth pony, a slightly slender unicorn, and an average pegasus that hovered above the two. As the trio grew near, Saphira could make out a white coat on the earth pony, and a golden spiky mane. His chest-piece was incredibly bulky, even more so than an average set of heavy armor. Despite the fact that he wore his helmet, his mane was perfectly visible. On the base and back of the helmet, spikes were lined up. In the visor, Saphira could see the faint glint of red. The entirety of the armor was a dark grey. His cutie mark was a bishop chess piece. Slung over his shoulder, the stallion carried his armor-bag, which was twice the size of a normal bag.

The unicorn's coat was a light tan, and his mane was long and mostly covered his eyes, which were light gray. He wore a forest green medium chest-piece, the shoulders of which were bulkier than average. His helmet, a mix between a brain-bucket and full-head, dangled from a strap on his chest-piece. The unicorn's cutie mark was a mug filled with cider.

The pegasus hovering over the two was a thin figure, with a white coat. His blue and grew mane was styled into a forward-facing Mohawk. His chest-piece was a solid medium plate, with a mixed red and blue pattern. The helmet that hung on his strap had a red visor, whilst the rest of the helmet was styled to resemble a skull. The stallion's cutie mark was that of a Battle Ball goal with an X in the center.

The three eventually trotted over to the group, and all eyes fell on Saphira. Blank Blitz gave a short cough to interrupt the silence.

"Uh, Saphira…" Blitz began. "This is Bishop, Barley, and Lightning Runner. They play defense, forward rush, and goalie, respectively."

Saphira looked at the three for a moment. "Nice to meet you all."

Bishop gives a nod. "Glad to finally meet you. Coach said we'd be getting a new filly on the team."

Barley shrugged. "The more the merrier, I guess."

Lightning Runner landed beside the group. "Nice to meet you. You look like a good player."

The gathering went on for five or so minutes, with the members of the group exchanging short stories or personal information. After a short, yet relatively pleasant, meet-and-greet, the gathering was interrupted by the sound of the front doors swinging open. The entire group pivoted, or for those already facing the direction, scrambled to see.

In the doorway stood two silhouettes. The first was a shorter, slimmer frame of the mare, while the second was a taller, bulky frame of a stallion. At first, Saphira believed they were more players, until she noticed the rest of the group was silent. They wouldn't have been silent if another player had entered. The two figures moved forward.

In the light, the earth stallion looked like he was indeed fit to play Battle Ball, until Saphira noticed the leg brace on his left hind leg. With a dark brown coat and a short, black mane, the stallion bore at least three scars on his face. He wore a dark green vest, and a blank expression on his face.

The unicorn mare seemed to be middle-aged, or perhaps a bit older. With a lightly tanned coat, and a light brown mane, her face was that of a mare who smiled throughout her whole life. She wore a light yellow dress with white linings, and a motherly smile on her face.

"You must be Saphira." The stallion said, his lips tightening into a small smile. "Glad to finally have you on the team. And this is Ruby, I assume."

"Yes. We're both glad to be here, aren't we Ruby?" Saphira replied, glancing to the dragon on her back.

"Yeah, yeah… So, when do we eat?" Ruby asked.

"Relax." The stallion said. "Just call me Coach. I'll let you go off do whatever in a minute. First, Rain Roller."

Rain Roller immediately took flight. "Yes coach?"

"Show Saphira and Ruby to the mares' dorms. The rest of you… Do whatever." And Coach paced off, towards one of the many doors on the inner rim of the stadium.

The mare that walked beside Coach stopped, and chatted with the other players as Rain Roller led Saphira and Ruby to a door on the left of the stadium, and down a long, narrow, hallway lit with bright lighting. After two turns down the hall, the trio came to a door labeled "Dormitories: Mares". Rain Roller opened the door, and gestured inside.

Saphira paced inside, and Rain Roller followed. The inside of the room held six beds exactly, with three on each side of the wall. In the farthest corner of the room was a door, most likely a bathroom or something of the sort. On the far end of the room was a medium-sized TV on a stand. Rain Roller flew over two beds, and set down beside one in the corner.

"This is your bunk… But, uh, I don't know where Ruby can sleep…" Rain Roller said, shrugging.

"Ruby has her own bed." Saphira replied, hefting her armor bag onto the foot of the bed. "Isn't that right?"

Ruby jumped down from Saphira's back, and nodded. "Yeah."

Rain Roller eyed the two for a moment. "Alright then. Make yourselves at home, and whenever you're ready, meet the rest of us out at the field. I think we're grabbing some lunch." And Rain Roller flew over the beds, and paced out the door.

Ruby dug about in Saphira's bag of personal belongings, before she struggled to pull out a smaller bag, approximately half the size. After a moment of struggling, she yanked the bag free and fell to the floor. The baby dragon unzipped the bag, and pulled out what seemed to be a rolled-up dog-bed. Ruby unrolled the bed beside Saphira's bed, and glanced back at the pegasus, who had already unpacked most of her clothing into the locker at the foot of the bed.

"So, what do you think so far, Ruby?" Saphira asked, glancing at the baby dragon from over her shoulder as she began unpacking her armor. "These are all a nice bunch of ponies, aren't they?"

Ruby shrugged, and lifted herself up onto Saphira's bed to sit on the edge. "They're… Something alright."

Saphira chuckled, and rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Come on, let's go get some lunch. I'm _starving!_"

Ruby returned the laugh, and climbed up onto Saphira's back. The pegasus closed the footlocker, and paced towards the exit of the dorm. As the two entered the hallway, one of the doors on the wall creaked open. On the front of the door, a small badge read "**BOILER**". From behind the door, the shape of an earth pony stepped out. The pony wore what seemed to be light armor, but with little to no padding. The suit itself was a full-body fire-suit, and the pony wore a gas-mask and fire-hood instead of helmet. The pony stared at Saphira, then Ruby for what seemed like an eternity. After that, the figure disappeared back into the boiler room.

Ruby shuddered. "What was that all about?"

Saphira shook her head before carefully trotting past the room and out into the field. "I don't know."

The mare who was with the Coach had disappeared, while the rest of the group had moved closer to the ball-field itself. Blank Blitz appeared beside Saphira a moment after she walked out. The stallion still wore his breather-helmet.

"Uh, the strangest thing happened in the hall…" Saphira began. "A pony in a fire-suit and gas-mask walked out of the boiler room, stared at us, then disappeared again."

Blank Blitz nodded. "Yeah, that was Soul Burner. Never takes off the suit. Sleeps in the boiler room. We're _pretty_ sure it's a mare though, but not completely."

Saphira paused for a moment, before shrugging. "Anyhow – where are we eating?"

"There's a pizzeria a few blocks down – one of the few places that's willing to serve a team of Battle Ball-players. Real fond of us, too." Blank Blitz replied, gesturing for Saphira to follow.

"Pizzeria?" Ruby asked, "Sounds good to me."

**Hello again! Glad to update this. I'll most likely be messaging most of you about your characters, or something else which I shan't spoil. Just don't be surprised if you see my name in your inbox. Bishop and Barley belong to S. Dlonyer. Soul Burner belongs to Noxfero. Lightning Runner belongs to Skullcrusher206. **


End file.
